Off Days?

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rdavid

Part of the Furniture Now
Jun 30, 2018
648
9
Milton, FL
As a fairly new smoker (1 year) I’m still in the “discovery phase” and am trying several different blends. I use tobaccoreviews.com a lot and have had great success along with recommendations here on this forum. This has resulted in a very good start to a widely expanding cellar and I’m very happy with my choices.
Predictably, my tastes/palate have definitely gone through some changes and I’m really enjoying trying new blends. Also, my consumption rate has skyrocketed and I average 8 to 10 bowls a day when I’m off work. 2 to 4 bowls a day when I am working.
Something I’ve experienced pretty much since the beginning is that I occasionally have days where everything tastes off. Bitter or bitey, or just not right. Of course my techniques are constantly evolving and I do feel as if I’m progressing as I’ve learned so much here, packing, cadence, lighting, tamping etc. There’s usually no rhyme or reason as to when it happens but I can usually tell from the first bowl of the day and blend type doesn’t matter.
Are these off days a normal experience? Definitely not enough of a hindrance to make me want to stop but somewhat of a downer. Anyone else experience this? Will it go away?

 
As you learn to smoke more slowly, and get the packing to suit your technique, and dry the tobacco thoroughly, things will get better. Plus, you will have to toughen up your tongue a bit. You get a bit of the cat's tongue texture going on, like a well worn leather belt. Mrs. Cosmic has no complaints. :puffy:

 

ray47

Lifer
Jul 10, 2015
2,451
5,610
Dalzell, South Carolina
Even the most experienced and long time pipe smokers have off days now and then. I've been smoking a pipe for 50+ yrs and there are off days now and then. Sometimes I'll go 2 or 3 days without a pipe, but when I return it's a more pleasant experience.

 

workman

Lifer
Jan 5, 2018
2,793
4,219
The Faroe Islands
I have those days too. Sometimes it is because I'm stressed by something, lack of sleep, too much on my mind etc., but not always. When it happens, I can't taste the smoke. It's just bland and flavorless.

Other times everything will bite. It hasn't happened very often, so my theory that it has something to do with shifts in air-pressure is still just a theory.

Many of us have those occasional off-days with smoking and indeed with everything else. There was even a day last year I didn't fancy a beer.

 

lawdawg

Lifer
Aug 25, 2016
1,792
3,801
Sometimes "off days" can happen when you smoke too much! Ten bowls a day is a lot. If your tongue can handle it, then all the more power to you. If I try to smoke that many bowls in a day, I get palate fatigue, so I puff harder and smoke fuller flavored blends to compensate, and end up smoking hot and burning my tongue. I usually keep it around five bowls per day or less on the weekends, unless I'm just smoking an easy codger blend, in which case I can smoke quite a bit more.
What Cosmic said about toughening up your tongue is true too. And what others said about having the occasional "off day" is true as well.

 

5star

Part of the Furniture Now
Nov 17, 2017
727
2,018
PacNW USA
I agree with everyone’s earlier comments. Also I take ‘off days’ from smoking. (And happen to be doing that right now, having gone smokeless for 4 days.) I find that it helps re-set my palate when I periodically do this.

 

georgebmcclelland

Starting to Get Obsessed
Nov 27, 2018
270
24
It sounds obvious, and just throwing it out there, but sometimes it's just a matter of always brushing your teeth and using an alcohol free mouth wash everyday. Among other things, tobacco smoke itself can cause dead skin cells to build up on the papillae of the tongue, the parts that contain your taste buds, masking your tastes and creating and unpleasant environment inside your mouth. This gets even worse when you add heat to the mix, but can happen regardless of how slowly or expertly your pipe is smoked. Contrary to what we all feel to be absolutely true, tobacco smoke is not good for our mouths at all. A strict oral hygiene regimen, as well as a proper diet, can help make taste loss issues much less common.

 
Jan 7, 2019
46
5
I think the first response pretty much nailed it, IMHO. As you get everything down to second nature it should ‘smooth out’ considerably. What’s interesting to me is how my appreciation for nuance is continuing to evolve. Also, it’s not unusual for one’s tastes to change over time. As a younger man, I used to love potato chips and french fries, these days I don’t care for them too much. Similarly, I began with Va/Pers and though I certainly continue to smoke them on occasion, I find myself these days reaching for an old cob and my jars of burley-forward blends. I still adore English & Balkan blends - probably I appreciate them more and more as my taste refines. A few months from now... ah well we’ll see when they get here ;-)
Roll with it and puff on!

 

rdavid

Part of the Furniture Now
Jun 30, 2018
648
9
Milton, FL
Thanks to all for sage advice. You all make very good points. Never ceases to amaze at how many variables can change things from day to day or even bowl to bowl.
This experience as a whole has been a welcome addition to my life and I’ll most likely go to the grave smelling like ODF!
Looking forward to the journey ahead.

 

mso489

Lifer
Feb 21, 2013
41,210
60,433
Oh, definitely. I have stretches of several days, or a week, where no bowl is all that satisfying, and then I'll hit the zone again. Sometimes when life events or a chest cold will make me give up any pipe smoking for a while, this usually is a beneficial reset and wakes up my taste and smell and brings back the pleasure. I think relaxing expectations is often a good way to go.

 

crashthegrey

Lifer
Dec 18, 2015
3,812
3,584
41
Cobleskill, NY
www.greywoodie.com
There will be off days for almost everything in my experience. I cook all of my own food, and there are days that I just don't want to eat because nothing tastes good. For me, everything has an off day. Maybe I am just crazy though.

 

olkofri

Lifer
Sep 9, 2017
8,033
14,644
The Arm of Orion
I agree with Workman: plenty of factors besides tobacco. I was amazed that when I was in Germany I never had tongue bite, whereas here it was a common occurrence. Diet, environmental conditions, mood, physical activity (or lack thereof), &c., &c.

 

hawky454

Lifer
Feb 11, 2016
5,338
10,220
Austin, TX
I sill have off days, hell, sometimes I have “off weeks” and I’ve been smoking a pipe for little over 9 years now. Off days happen, just put a dip in instead or snuff it up.

 
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